Warrenpoint Comhaltas Tours Russia
Our group of 12 performers at the Palace of Culture in Kirovsk, Russia
At 4:15am on Wednesday 11 March 2020, 12 musicians from Rinn Mhic Giolla Rua CCÉ took their first steps on a musical invitational tour of the Murmansk region of Russia.
Arriving in St Petersburg at 7pm and having been fed and watered, the group sat down in a plush hotel conference room to run through the set for the tour. Given the pressures of school, university and work, this was actually the first time the full group had rehearsed together! Next morning dawned dark and wet, but as a spot of retail therapy was on the cards in the massive Galeria Mall, spirits were high. Several hours later, whilst Branch Cathaoirelach Jimi Quinn, accompanied by trip co-ordinator Eddy Curtis and two musicians went to check the sound requirements for their sold-out concert on St Patrick’s Day, the rest of the group embarked on a whistle-stop walking tour of St Petersburg with Noel Pepper, including the stunning Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood.
8 of our musicians and dancers outside the Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood
Regrouping a few hours later, it was back to the airport and onwards to the city of Kirovsk, deep inside the Arctic Circle, our base for the next 5 days. Whilst we were expecting snow and temperatures ranging from -6C to -20C, we were completely unaware that Kirovsk was experiencing the heaviest snowfall it had seen in over 35 years, and our hotel was only approachable on foot, through a path cut into the snow, the sides of which, in many places, towered way over our heads!
After settling into our rooms and unpacking, it was time for dinner. With the snow falling outside, a valiant attempt was made to raise the temperatures with an hour long session before all fell exhausted into bed.
Next morning, any remaining vestiges of sleep were banished by a two-hour cross country skiing experience and a high speed ride of a snow mobile. Following lunch, we visited a huge labyrinth, covering the size of three football pitches, made entirely under the snow, where ice sculptors from all over the Artic region come each year to carve the snowy tunnels with displays carved into the walls and amazing freestanding ice sculptures.
If that didn’t take our breath away, emerging from the last snow hall into the teeth of an Arctic storm, where the snow was actually falling horizontally, most certainly did!
The itinerary for the next few days was ice skating, in the key of B Flat for most of us, sightseeing and, of course, more tunes!
On Sunday morning we spent two hour skiing, of a fashion, on the lower slopes of the Big Wood ski resort before taking the ski lift and then walking to the top of the mountain, some 1100 metres tall (200+ metres above Slieve Donard!) to get an overview of the area and to experience a wind chill in the region of -35C, still not cold enough to prevent the obligatory snowball fight!
Thawed out a couple of hours later, we met with a group of Russian teenagers in the Palace of Culture, who entertained us with songs and music, to which we responded in kind, adding a few dances into the mix. Our hosts were keen to learn to learn a traditional Irish dance and in no time, ‘The Waves of Tory’ were transformed into ‘The Waves of Murmansk’.
Monday, after a formal lunch and exchange of speeches and gifts, saw us flying back to St Petersburg, where, tired and hungry, we arrived at 11:45pm, but before we had a chance to open the doors to our rooms, we received a call from home informing us that all factors were pointing to a closure of airports and borders within a matter of hours and that we needed to get home immediately!
We had, as much as possible, due to travelling and intermittent WiFi, kept an eye on the developing situation, but were unaware of the rapidity at which the situation was developing. Following advice, the next 3 hours were taken in sourcing flights homeward, not an easy task as airports were closing by the minute and no airlines would allow us to back as a group, thereby adding to the tension, as we were not sure if by booking as two seperate groups, would allow us all to get home together.
However, 4 hours later, we were all back in the airport we had just left, hotel beds unslept in, and ready to board a flight to London Luton.
Arriving in Luton, we had an 8-hour wait for our flight home, so after a very healthy breakfast of burgers, donuts and fizzy drinks, our sleep deprived musicians made the best of it by doing what they do best, and performed what was probably the only St Patrick’s Day session in the world that day - much to the delight and amazement of staff and passengers in Luton Airport.
Whilst we were very disappointed to have to cancel our sold-out performance in St Petersburg, we are in unchartered waters and, as always, the well-being and safety of our group is always paramount
Jimi Quinn
Cathaoirleach
